Xiang Ran walked for a while before arriving at Wenbei Building.
The School of Humanities and the School of Arts were located here; the campus was quite large, and their Computer Science department didn’t come by often.
However, the popular dating spots like Lover's Slope and Magpie Bridge were nearby. Just the garden full of begonia flowers looked far more romantic than the bare pines and cypresses below their dorm.
Room 206 was a large office with a separate cubicle inside.
When he knocked and entered, he found his dorm leader, Wang Hao, tapping away at the keyboard.
Seeing Xiang Ran, Wang Hao finally had time to stand up and take a look at the documents.
“Thanks!"
Wang Hao sighed while staring at the computer.
“Do you have anything else to do? Can you help me organize a table?”
Xiang Ran nodded; he didn’t have any classes in the afternoon, so this small task was no problem.
Just before Wang Hao headed to the meeting, Xiang Ran was quickly assigned a seat by the window.
“Thanks a ton, bro! I’ll treat you to hot pot tonight!”
Xiang Ran took his task seriously. He waved at Wang Hao and then lowered his head to start reviewing the document.
He didn’t notice that his phone was lighting up and then going dark in his pocket.
Unfortunately, it was tough for Liu Shuyao on the other end of the line.
She stared at her phone for a long time, but it showed no signs of ringing, making her feel like a wilted lily, with the corners of her eyes drooping.
The hospital was too stuffy, so she had secretly come out to accompany Zhao Ying to pick up a document. Recently, their debate club had been busy with the school anniversary, planning to hold two debate competitions. They were fiercely competing over topics; in this era of social media, if a topic didn’t stand out, it wouldn’t spark much discussion. However, if the debate was too sharp, it could easily lead to unintended controversies, leaving Zhao Ying feeling overwhelmed.
At that moment, the two were walking toward the Wenbei Building.
Seeing Liu Shuyao continuously scrolling through her call history in a daze, Zhao Ying couldn't help but ask.
"Isn't he busy if he's not answering the phone? Didn't you say he does tutoring?"
Liu Shuyao sighed and pressed the lock button on her phone, lowering her gaze.
"But today is Wednesday; he usually tutors on Mondays and Fridays, and he doesn’t have class this afternoon."
"He must still be angry with me."
"Why would he be angry with you?"
Zhao Ying also found this puzzling. Ever since Liu Shuyao's car accident, her memory had been disoriented, mistakenly treating imagined comic scenarios as reality. It was as if she had inexplicably created a convenient reason for her strange relationship with Xiang Ran.
"It's all because of my accident..."
Liu Shuyao felt a deep sadness at the memory of Xiang Ran's cold demeanor in the hospital.
"He used to be so forgiving, but this time I really was too willful."
Her self-reflection was sincere, leaving Zhao Ying a bit shocked by the internal logic. Yet, it seemed somewhat accurate, especially since it was indeed the driver's fault for driving under the influence.
"But didn’t you say you wanted to apologize to him last time?"
"Yes, but I haven’t been forgiven."
As they entered the academic building, Liu Shuyao's mood was still low. She absentmindedly fiddled with the rabbit-shaped phone case, her head hung low.
On the way, she encountered a few classmates and exchanged light greetings, her mind preoccupied with thoughts of how to appease her angry boyfriend.
Zhao Ying noticed Liu Shuyao's distracted demeanor and was about to say something when she caught sight of a head peeking in from outside.
She quickly nudged the person beside her with her elbow.
But it was too late.
Zheng Fuxin stood in front of Liu Shuyao, holding a huge bouquet of baby’s breath.
Although she was supposed to be discharged next week, she was allowed to step outside for some fresh air. She had intended to relax, but now she found herself facing this guy again.
Liu Shuyao's face immediately fell, and she felt an increase in her headache.
“Shuyao, aren’t you supposed to be discharged next week? Why did you sneak out?”
“What’s it to you?” Liu Shuyao frowned and retorted irritably.
Zheng Fuxin, taken aback by her response, looked displeased and decided to confront her.
“Also, I checked; you don’t have a boyfriend. Why did you lie to me that day?”
Liu Shuyao couldn’t be bothered to respond to him. If it weren’t for the business dealings between their families, she would have punched this guy!
And how could she not have a boyfriend?
She had a tall, handsome boyfriend who was 183 cm with abs!
Zheng Fuxin probably didn’t expect someone else was inside; their voices were quite loud, and Xiang Ran wasn’t deaf—he heard everything clearly.
If he had known he’d run into Liu Shuyao after so long, he definitely wouldn’t have agreed to help the dorm leader.
The atmosphere was a bit awkward. Being inside, he couldn’t just leave, so he decided to gamble a little, thinking that the people outside wouldn’t come in.
But after comforting himself for less than a minute, the landline on the desk next to him suddenly rang.
“Ring, ring, ring.”
The sound made Xiang Ran's heart race. Just as he was trying to think of a solution, he saw Zhao Ying hurriedly come in to answer the phone.
“Ah!”
Zhao Ying hadn’t expected anyone else to be inside. The key point was that the person was none other than Xiang Ran!
Hearing the commotion, Liu Shuyao also walked into the room.
The two looked at each other, and Liu Shuyao froze in place, her eyes instantly turning into innocent puppy eyes, bringing back Xiang Ran's memories from the hospital just a few days ago.
“Shuyao, you still haven’t answered me!” Zheng Fuxin’s voice came from behind.
Though Xiang Ran felt a bit awkward, he was uninterested in their situation. Sticking to his principle of "not taking the initiative," especially now when he didn’t want to have any further contact with Liu Shuyao, he had plenty of things to deal with.
“You guys talk; I’ll head out first.”
After saying that, he walked straight toward the exit, not even glancing at Liu Shuyao.
As they brushed past each other, Liu Shuyao bit her lip, feeling a bit lost, and instinctively chased after him.
Zheng Fuxin, unaware of the situation, tried to follow, but Zhao Ying quickly grabbed him and handed him the phone, effectively blocking his way out.
Liu Shuyao quickly caught up with Xiang Ran and pulled him into an empty classroom nearby.
"Click."
The sound of the door locking echoed.
Xiang Ran looked at the girl who had suddenly ambushed him. Leaning against an unsteady desk, his height of 183 cm nearly matched Liu Shuyao's 165 cm, giving the impression that he was being pinned against the wall.
“Could you get off me first?”
As he spoke, he noticed Liu Shuyao's chest rising and falling rapidly from her quick breaths, prompting him to try to shift away a bit.
This position was a bit too much for his reserved nature.
Hearing her boyfriend's words, Liu Shuyao immediately took a few steps back, creating some distance between them.
The classroom was suddenly filled with their breaths, and Liu Shuyao dared only to cautiously glance at the person before her.
Heaven knows how nervous she was, fearing that the earlier scene would lead to a misunderstanding.
She hadn’t even received forgiveness for her previous mistake, and now there was this interruption. If things got worse, she really wouldn’t know how to face it.
I swear the rich second-generation guy has no significant role; he’s just a tiny plot device!
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